Peterhead Academy

Peterhead Academy

Motto	A House Built On A Rock
Type	State comprehensive
Head Teacher	Shona Sellars
Location	Prince Street Peterhead Aberdeenshire AB42 1SY Scotland Coordinates: 57°31′29″N 2°00′47″W / 57.524789°N 2.013193°W / 57.524789; -2.013193
Local authority	Aberdeenshire Council
Staff	91 FTE (at September 2015)
Students	1,130 (at September 2015)[1]
Gender	Co-educational
Ages	11–18
Houses	6
Colours	Black, White and Maroon
Website	peterheadacademy.aberdeenshire.sch.uk

Peterhead Academy is a six-year Comprehensive Community School in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is operated by Aberdeenshire Council.

History

The original building dates back to the late 1800s. The South-east (Modern Languages) wing was built in 1961 with further building in the 1970s taking the school to its current form.

Peterhead Academy houses around 1,300 pupils most of which are drawn from its associated primary schools. The Academy is split up into six houses: Arbuthnot, Buchan, Craigewan, Grange, Marischal and Slains. Each house is a different colour with Arbuthnot green, Buchan red, Craigewan yellow, Grange purple, Marischal blue and Slains Turquoise. At one point there used to be eight houses: the six previously mentioned, plus Ugie and Ravenscraig. The Academy's motto is "Domus Super Petram Aedificata" (A House Built on a Rock).^[2] The Academy is Scotland's largest school at over 22,920 square metres in terms of gross internal floor area.^[3]

Community School Network

In addition to Peterhead Academy, the Peterhead Community School Network consists of Anna Ritchie School, Boddam School, Buchanhaven Primary School, Burnhaven School, Clerkhill School, Dales Park School, Longhaven School, Meethill School, Peterhead Central School, Port Erroll School and St Fergus School.^[4]

Rock Challenge

The school's longest running competitive success is in the UK Rock Challenge. They became the first Scottish school to compete in 2001, in Carlisle, the year after was the first Scottish event in Aberdeen's AECC. Since then the school competed every year. They became the first school from Scotland to receive premiership status, the first school to perform at the first Scottish Final in 2012; the first school to have performed 4 times in one tour; the first premiership school to have performed at two events in one tour, and the first Scottish school to win a Premier Final. On 23 June 2012, Peterhead Academy became Northern Premier Champions and then on 22 July 2012 they competed at the second National Final, and were placed 4th in the whole of the UK.

Former pupils

• Alexander Charles Farquharson (1864-1961), Member of Parliament (1918-1922), doctor, barrister and soldier
• Flora Garry (1900-2000), poet
• Stuart MacLeod (1980- ), magician
• Frederick Martin (1882-1950), Member of Parliament (1922-1924)
• James Watt and Martin Dickie, founders of Brewdog brewery
• Estelle Maskame (1997- ), author

References